Kitchen Help
by Assirym
Summary: Prompt. Granny is sick and can't be at the diner so Belle offers Ruby her help. One Shot.


It makes absolute sense that its crazy busy right now because Granny, who never ever ever gets sick is coming down with something awful and Ruby is holding the place down on her own. The entire town of Storybrooke is obviously plotting against her, craving Granny's pancakes on a Saturday morning. Well they are all going to be disappointed because today they are Ruby's pancakes and Ruby's pancakes taste a lot like the bitter poison apples of irritation.

Ruby rolls her eyes at herself, scoffing lightly as she flips a few pancakes over. It's got to be some kind of rule around here to not relate anything edible to poison apples, even if Regina is trying to change her ways. Besides that's really dramatic and for the most part she tries to stray far from dramatics. A girl that turns into a wolf every month has enough of that in her life.

"Uh, its getting a little crazy out here Ruby." Emma says poking her head in, looking a little terrified when Ruby spins around to meet her gaze.

"I'm only one person you know!" The brunette retorts waving her spatula around wildly. "Well… that is actually a little debatable since there are a few parts of me but.. oh, you get it."

Emma nods, rubbing her palms against her jeans. "You seem a little on edge." She says slowly, needlessly.

If the pancakes on the grill top weren't seconds from burning Ruby would have glared at her. Set her eyes on the woman and willed them to shine a wolfy yellow because yeah, she's a little on edge. Astounding observation.

"Is everything alright?" Comes another voice and the smooth calm tone of it instantly relaxes Ruby's growing rage. Belle.

"Yeah, Ruby's just losing it." Emma dead pans and just like that Ruby's ready to snap again.

"Emma if you are not going to help I'd appreciate it if you kept your comments to yourself." But the blonde just chuckles, not at all helping Ruby's mood and shakes her head, checking her watch.

"I wish I could but I've gotta go pick up the kid from Regina's, he wants to go to some science fair something or other at the high school." She says backing out of the room and nodding a goodbye to Belle. "I guess I'll just grab some coffee on the way back."

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever." Ruby calls to her, laying out two orders onto plates and pouring more batter out to cook. She's so in the zone that she completely forgets she is being watched until she turns around to bring the two plates out and nearly drops them both at the sight of blue eyes staring back at her.

"Belle." She gasps, catching herself before making a mess. "Don't do that." But Belle smiles and unlike Emma it doesn't annoy Ruby at all, its actually kind of nice.

"Seems like you could use some help." Belle says sweetly, hooking her thumb over her shoulder at the noisy morning crowd.

"Ugh, you Belle French are an angel." Ruby says with relief, immediately accepting the help and shoving the two plates into Belle's waiting hands. "Can you take these to table six?"

Belle's smile grows considerably as she takes the plates, glad to be helping and turns to head out into the diner with an adorable determined look on her face.

Counting her lucky stars and maybe swooning a little, Ruby goes back to the pancakes only to hear footsteps approaching behind her again.

"Um, Ruby… which is table six?"

Its the sort of moment that completely warrants a face palm action and if Ruby wasn't holding an over sized spatula she would have done it.

Its gonna be a long day.

—-

"I need a cackle out west, an order of scrambled hen fruit and down with extra cow paste." Belle rattles off happily as she practically runs by the open doorway.

Ruby is dumbfounded, what just happened? She was in the middle of dumping a new batch of seasoned potatoes out for home-fries and now she's starting to think that the heat in the kitchen is getting to her head or maybe she is having a stroke. She's heard that during a stroke words stop being at all sensible to a person.

Thankfully Belle backtracked seeming to have forgotten to add something. "Oh and a side of mystery in the ally." She said with a dazzling smile and Ruby almost missed her for a second time.

"Belle wait!" She choked out, wiping her greasy hands on her apron. "What the heck are you talking about?"

Belles forehead creases in confusion and she shakes her head slightly. "I was giving you someone's order." She spoke as if that was completely obvious.

"Someone ordered a mystery in the back room, or whatever it is you said?" Ruby questioned, her own confusion growing at the other woman's serious expression.

Though Belle was laughing, the sound so light and addictive it cleared away Ruby's frustration with ease.

"No silly it means a side of hash."

Ruby's eyes widened. "And this makes me the silly one? Belle that doesn't make any sense… what kind of code are you speaking in, I'm not sure I'm from that planet."

Belle grinned, looking rather pleased with herself. "It's diner talk, I watched this fascinating documentary on it about the 1940's the other day and-.."

"Belle…" Ruby breathed out, pressing her fingertips to her temple. "How about we keep it simple so I don't think you want me to go skin a cow or something?" The request was completely reasonable but the disappointed expression on Belle's face made Ruby panic for a second, something in her stomach sinking. "You… can teach me all about the diner lingo or whatever later though okay?" She added quickly, unable to help herself and Belle was smiling again so really it was kind of worth it anyway.

—-

They were almost through, rounding the end of the rush, Ruby could feel it. Then she'd have enough time to call Harry and get him in here on his day off, she couldn't survive the day like this, no wonder Granny has gray hair.

"God if I sprout any gray hair over this Granny totally owes me." But suddenly her thoughts were interrupted by a loud crash in the diner, she couldn't move fast enough to get out there. "What happened?" She asked before she spotted it all. A coffee pot, a few plates, and food scattered over the floor.

"Ruby, I'm so sorry…" Belle began, leaning down to start gathering the broken pieces but Ruby was already shaking her head.

"Belle its fine, it happens." She spoke truthfully, yeah she was a little irritated but sometimes things hit the floor, she herself had done it so many times there was no way she could be angry about it. "There is a broom and things in the front closet, why don't you go keep an eye on those pancakes in there and I'll take care of this? They should be ready to flip."

Without waiting for a response Ruby moved toward the front of the diner to fetch the broom, when she came back Belle was gone.

"It really wasn't her fault you know." Mary Margret said from where she was sitting beside David in a nearby booth. "Sneezy and Dopey got into some kind of argument about the mines, knocked right into the tray she was carrying."

Ruby nodded, continuing to sweep up the mess. "Yeah I'm not mad its just today hasn't been the easiest day with Granny being-…" But her sentence trailed off as her body tensed, nostrils flaring as she smelled the air.

In a flash the brunette left the broom behind, dashing into the kitchen to find Belle flailing a tray helplessly at a growing flame on the stove top.

"Belle!" She shrieked, moving to grab the extinguisher and smothering the fire out. "How did you manage to almost burn the kitchen down in under five minutes?!"

Belle looked completely stricken, her eyes welling up a little and Ruby's throat constricted at the sight. "Oh..oh no, no it's alright. I mean, I'm just glad you're not hurt and everything is fine no need to panic." The last part a little more for her own sake than Belle's.

"I suppose I'm not good at any of this am I?" Belle said in a small voice, smoothing out the front of her dress with her eyes cast down.

"Maybe it's just not your thing…" Ruby said wearily, attempting to rescue the now crisp pancakes on the grill top. "Like we know you're great with books and awesome facts, I'm sure there are other things…"

"Cleaning." The other girl added quickly with renewed excitement. "I'm excellent at cleaning"

Ruby smiled, nodding her head and grabbing the rag from the soap bucket. "Perfect, looked like there were a few tables that need clearing out there and there is still a bit of a mess on the floor."

Belle took the rag, nodding enthusiastically and headed back out of the kitchen.

"Just be careful of the glass!" Ruby called after her, then sighed, coming to realize that Belle was more than a little accident prone.

—-

"Ruby."

"Oh not _another_ order?" Ruby groaned practically throwing her spatula down on the counter.

Belle chuckled shaking her head. "No, everyone's cleared out. No more orders, not yet and I just saw Harry pull around back."

"Oh thank goodness." Ruby mumbled out, leaning against the counter and propping her head up with her chin in her palm.

"Are you alright? You look a little… clammy."

"Just tired I guess." Ruby decided, though her throat did feel a little scratchy.

"Are you sure you're not coming down with what your Gran has?" Belle asked patiently, resisting the urge to press the back of her hand to Ruby's forehead.

"Oh no, I don't get sick ever. It's a wolf thing."

"And Gran?"

Ruby lifted her head, opening her eyes fully to look at Belle and then pouted. "Oh, right…ugh, I don't want to be sick though." She whined, almost stomping her foot. But Belle was chuckling again, that same addictive sound that spread through Ruby with some sort of calming power.

"Come on you silly wolf." Belle said taking Ruby's shoulders gently and leading her out toward the front of the diner. "Lets get you some tea."

Ruby was still pouting but Harry was on his way in and the shift change was coming soon, she'd be free for the rest of the day and Belle wanted to make her tea and call her silly. Maybe being sick wouldn't be half bad.


End file.
